Written Answers Wednesday 23 September 2009

Scottish Executive

Advice

Johann Lamont (Glasgow Pollok) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what progress there has been in mapping the provision of services for providing advice to people on the uptake of benefits.

Johann Lamont (Glasgow Pollok) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive when the results of the joint review of advice and information services carried out by the Scottish Government and COSLA will be published.

Alex Neil: COSLA and the Scottish Government are progressing with a review of information and advice provision, which will include an assessment of how current provision fits with needs. A major aim of the review is to ensure that public resources are being used effectively and efficiently, and that there is quality and consistency of service provision across Scotland. The review will be published by the end of 2009. One of the key objectives of the review will be the provision of uniform, high quality and joined-up services that are based on needs.

Benefits

Johann Lamont (Glasgow Pollok) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it is intended that pilot projects will be undertaken on the uptake of child tax credits.

Johann Lamont (Glasgow Pollok) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it is intended that pilot projects will be undertaken on the uptake of working tax credits.

Johann Lamont (Glasgow Pollok) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it is intended that pilot projects will be undertaken on the uptake of Disability Living Allowance.

Johann Lamont (Glasgow Pollok) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what progress has been made on evaluating projects for the uptake by older people of benefits.

Alex Neil: Policy, implementation and evaluation of the uptake of benefits and tax credits remains the responsibility of the UK Government. The Scottish Government however is committed to action on a number of levels to tackle poverty and income inequality in Scotland as set out in Achieving our Potential .

  Achieving our Potential commits significant new investment in 2009-10 and 2010-11 for income maximisation with a focus on benefits uptake for older people and other key groups. Key funding issued so far includes:

  £1.1million to Macmillan Cancer to provide cancer patients and carers with advice and information on welfare benefits and other financial matters in the five cancer treatment centres in Scotland.

  £160,000 to Citizens Advice Direct to provide free telephone benefit entitlement checks to those people that access the Energy Assistance Programme.

  £700,000 to provide income maximisation advice and support to older people in deprived parts of Falkirk, North Lanarkshire, West Lothian and Clackmannanshire.

  These do not focus on specific benefits and tax credits but take a holistic approach to increasing overall income. We are considering other initiatives and interventions which will provide support to those people that are most difficult to reach.

  Central to the income maximisation programme is a commitment to target those vulnerable groups that are not accessing the benefits that they are entitled to, and to identify ways to ensure that all benefits are claimed. The Scottish Government is working with UK counterparts on areas of shared interest to promote this.

Class Sizes

Bob Doris (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will legislate to support class sizes reduction.

Fiona Hyslop: Yes. This government is committed to reduce primary one to primary 3 class sizes to a maximum of 18. That commitment is set out in the concordat with local government. It has become evident that progress in meeting this commitment is being impeded because the statutory maximum for P1 classes remains at 30. I therefore intend to introduce regulations that will limit P1 classes to a maximum of 25 pupils as from the beginning of the next school year in 2010. Currently class sizes are governed in a number of ways from regulation, circular, terms and conditions and legislation and I also intend to establish a Class Size Review on how class sizes could be governed in the future. Further details of this review will be announced shortly.

Communities

Sandra White (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what organisations the Equality Unit has funded since 2003, showing the amount and date of each award.

Alex Neil: The detailed information requested is currently being collated and I will write to the member as soon as the information is available and a copy will be placed in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (Bib number 49237).

Communities

Irene Oldfather (Cunninghame South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what funding it intends to allocate to the safer streets projects in North Ayrshire in December 2009.

Fergus Ewing: I announced on 22 September 2009 that Safer Streets funding of £400,000 will be made available to support Community Safety Partnerships between November 2009 and March 2010. This brings our investment in Safer Streets since 2007 to £2.6 million.

  It is to be divided between all 32 local authorities to fund community safety initiatives including high visibility police patrols in "hot spot" areas, street pastors, targeting of street drinkers, enhanced CCTV and late night taxi marshals. The proposed maximum funding allocation for North Ayrshire is £15,758.

Conveyancing and Feudal Reform (Scotland) Act 1970

Michael Matheson (Falkirk West) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it plans to review the Conveyancing and Feudal Reform (Scotland) Act 1970 and, if so, what its plans are.

Fergus Ewing: Amendments to the Conveyancing and Feudal Reform (Scotland) Act 1970 are planned through a Debtor Protection Bill, which will be introduced to Parliament shortly.

  The Bill will take forward our commitment to implement the legislative recommendations of the Repossessions Group. http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2009/06/08164837/0.

  There are no plans for any wider review of the Conveyancing and Feudal Reform (Scotland) Act 1970.

Crime

Gavin Brown (Lothians) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how many (a) crimes and (b) offences have been recorded in the Lothian and Borders police force area in each year since 1995.

Kenny MacAskill: The total numbers of crimes and offences recorded by Lothian and Borders police force since 1995 are given in the following table:

  

 Year
Crimes Recorded
Offences Recorded
 Total


 19951
 18,365
 20,822
 39,187


 1995-96
 77,771
 69,367
 147,138


 1996-97
 73,782
 66,998
 140,780


 1997-98
 71,407
 76,423
 147,830


 1998-99
 73,335
 81,056
 154,391


 1999-2000
 84,106
 76,937
 161,043


 2000-01
 78,478
 79,024
 157,502


 2001-02
 79,860
 86,767
 166,627


 2002-03
 78,991
 78,248
 157,239


 2003-04
 80,833
 107,318
 188,151


 2004-052
 84,116
 126,624
 210,740


 2005-06
 80,571
 112,510
 193,081


 2006-07
 78,234
 108,224
 186,458


 2007-08
 70,754
 89,467
 160,221



  Notes:

  1. This data set is for the first quarter of 1995. From April 1995, the data was recorded by financial year whereas previously it had been recorded by calendar year.

  2. Trends in the recorded crime and offences figures since 2004-05 have been affected by the introduction of the Scottish Crime Recording Standard which, as anticipated, increased the numbers of minor crimes recorded by the police, such as minor crimes of vandalism and minor thefts.

Crime

Gavin Brown (Lothians) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how many (a) crimes, (b) non-sexual crimes of violence, (c) serious assaults, (d) crimes of rape and attempted rape, (e) crimes of housebreaking, (f) crimes of vandalism, (g) crimes of handling an offensive weapon, (h) drug crimes and (i) murders have occurred in each year since 2006-07.

Kenny MacAskill: Information on the total number of crimes committed in Scotland is not available as not all crimes are reported to the police.

  The following table gives information on the number of (c) serious assaults and (i) murders which have been recorded by the police in Scotland, in 2006-07 and 2007-08.

  

 Crime
 2006-07
 2007-08


 Serious assault
 6,525
 6,000


 Murder
 109
 98



  Figures for 2006-07 and 2007-08, for the other crime categories requested are given in Table 1 of the statistical bulletin Recorded Crime in Scotland 2007-08, a copy of which is available in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (Bib. number 46684).

  The corresponding figures for 2008-09 will be available following the publication of the statistical bulletin, Recorded Crime in Scotland, 2008-09, on Tuesday 29 September 2009.

Education

Christina McKelvie (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive when it will publish assessment plans for the Curriculum for Excellence.

Fiona Hyslop: Today in a speech to the Scottish Learning Festival in Glasgow, I will set out the Scottish Government’s Assessment Strategy. A copy of the strategy has been placed in Scottish Parliament Information Centre (Bib. number 49254). Additionally, we will publish our proposals today on the  Curriculum for Excellence website at: http://www.curriculumforexcellencescotland.gov.uk . The overall vision and key principles is being published today. This will be followed later in the year by a Framework for Assessment to provide more detailed guidance.

  Assessment is one of three key strands of work in implementing Curriculum for Excellence. The other areas are curriculum guidance, which was published in the spring, and National Qualifications, for which I announced detailed plans in Parliament on 11 June.

  The strategy has been developed in conjunction with key stakeholders and practitioners working with children and young people aged 3 to 18.

  The strategic vision for Assessment sets out the purposes and principles of assessment that will govern the assessment system for Curriculum for Excellence 3 to 18. The four main changes to assessment in Curriculum for Excellence are:

  Assessment practices will follow and support the new curriculum. This will promote higher quality learning and teaching and give more autonomy and professional responsibility to teachers.

  Standards and expectations will be defined in a way that reflects the principles of Curriculum for Excellence. This will support greater breadth and depth of learning and a greater focus on skills development including higher order skills.

  A national system of quality assurance and moderation for 3 to 18 will be developed to support teachers in achieving greater consistency and confidence in their professional judgements.

  A National Assessment Resource will help teachers to achieve greater consistency and understanding in their professional judgements. There will also be a major focus on CPD to help teachers develop the skills required.

Emergency Planning

George Foulkes (Lothians) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive when it last held a major incident exercise and what plans it has for a further exercise.

Kenny MacAskill: The most recent exercise to practice arrangements for responding to a Major Incident in which the Scottish Government played a major part took place on 16 September 2009. The next exercise to practice dealing with a Major Incident in which the Scottish Government is due to play a major role is scheduled to take place on 26 to 27 January 2010.

Employment

Alison McInnes (North East Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what additional action is being taken to reduce the rate and impact of unemployment in the areas that have not been selected to receive any of the additional £7.7 million of funding for college places announced by the Scottish Funding Council on 9 July 2009.

Fiona Hyslop: The Scottish Government’s ScotAction initiative is a skills support package for leading Scotland out of recession and on to economic growth. To help reduce the rate and impact of unemployment across Scotland the Scottish Government has:

  Changed the rules for Training for Work so that people are now able to access tailored, job-related training at the three months stage of unemployment. Employees on notice of redundancy can access this vocational training during the 90 day notification period.

  Created an additional 3,150 Training for Work places to offer job-focused training that is suited to the needs of individuals and employers:

  Introduced the Adopt an Apprentice scheme which provides £2,000 to employers willing to recruit a redundant apprentice to enable them to complete their training.

  Provided £16 million to recruit and support an additional 7,800 apprentices in 2009. This funding supports a two for one offer for Life Sciences apprenticeships, creating job opportunities in a sector that is key to Scotland’s future economic growth.

  Extended the eligibility to Individual Learning Accounts (ILA) so that they can be accessed by more people. Through the ILA200 offer people can receive £200 a year to take part in short, flexible pieces of work-focused training. In addition, ILA500 provides a grant of £500 per year towards higher education study at college or university.

  The Scottish Funding Council has made £7 million available to colleges throughout Scotland to support the training of people made redundant and Skills Development Scotland, with the support of £1.4 million European Social Funding, is doubling the number of careers advisers which will help an additional 4,600 individuals facing redundancy.

  In addition, we are making best use of the European Social Fund to support individuals entering or remaining in work. In March the Scottish Government announced £5.6 million for 33 projects supporting 7,000 people in the Highlands and Islands and in April the First Minister announced £24.1 million to fund 79 projects supporting 75,000 people in the rest of Scotland.

Energy

Ross Finnie (West of Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will list the countries to which coal was exported from Scotland, including England, Wales and Northern Ireland, showing how much was exported to each country in each of the last five years.

Jim Mather: The Scottish Government does not hold information centrally on how much coal was imported to or exported from Scotland, England or Wales.

Energy

Ross Finnie (West of Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what consideration it has given to the climate change implications of coal exported from Scotland.

Jim Mather: The Scottish Government recognises that emissions resulting from the combustion overseas of coal which originated in Scotland contributes to global emissions of greenhouse gases. Reducing global emissions requires global solutions and the Scottish Government strongly supports efforts to secure a new international agreement at the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change meeting in Copenhagen in December.

  Through the Climate Change (Scotland) Act, the Scottish Government is demonstrating strong leadership and our policies will help to influence Scottish consumption patterns and encourage new low carbon technologies that may be exported. Such measures will have a beneficial impact on global emissions.

Energy

Ross Finnie (West of Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will list the countries from which coal imported to Scotland was produced, showing how much was imported from each country in each of the last five years.

Jim Mather: The Scottish Government does not hold information centrally on how much coal was imported to or exported from Scotland, England or Wales.

Energy

Ross Finnie (West of Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what consideration it has given to the social and environmental implications of coal production in the countries from which coal has been imported to Scotland.

Jim Mather: We do not hold information centrally on the countries from which coal has been imported to Scotland.

  The Scottish Government recognises that emissions resulting from the combustion overseas of coal which originated in Scotland contributes to global emissions of greenhouse gases. Reducing global emissions requires global solutions and the Scottish Government strongly supports efforts to secure a new international agreement at the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change meeting in Copenhagen in December.

Energy

Ross Finnie (West of Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how much biomass for energy production was (a) imported to and (b) exported from Scotland in each of the last five years.

Ross Finnie (West of Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will list the countries from which biomass for energy production is imported to Scotland, showing how much was imported from each country in each of the last five years.

Jim Mather: The Forestry Commission has figures on wood biomass and publishes information on wood imports and exports at a UK level based on data compiled by HM Revenues and Customs. This can be found on their website http://www.forestry.gov.uk/website/forestry.nsf/byunique/infd-7aqhzh .

  Information on other types of biomass is not held centrally.

Energy

Ross Finnie (West of Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what consideration it has given to the social and environmental implications of coal production in Scotland.

Jim Mather: Coal will continue to form an important part of the energy mix in Scotland for some years. However, it must go hand in hand with the development of clean coal technology. Such technologies, including Carbon Capture and Storage, have the potential to both transform the way we generate power and also reduce emmissions significantly.

  Planning policies are in place to ensure opencast coal mining sites are only approved if they are environmentally acceptable or provide local benefits, such as jobs or land improvements, which clearly outweigh the impacts. It is right that the main responsibility for decisions on opencast mines lie with local authorities who are best placed to consider all the issues, whether environmental or economic.

Energy

Ross Finnie (West of Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how much public money would be required for (a) development and (b) on-going operation of the new coal-fired power station proposed by Ayrshire Power at Hunterston.

Jim Mather: Investment decisions on fossil fuel power stations are a matter for the private sector within the context of the regulatory framework operated by OFGEM.

Epilepsy

Stuart McMillan (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how much funding it has allocated to each local authority for treating epilepsy in each of the last five years.

Nicola Sturgeon: The Scottish Government does not allocate funding to local authorities for the treatment of epilepsy. However, each local area health board is required to determine the amount of funding required for the treatment of epilepsy within its own area from within the baseline funding it is allocated by the Scottish Government.

External Relations

Robert Brown (Glasgow) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive for what purpose the First Minister met representatives of the Qatar Investment Authority on 7 May 2008; who was present at the meeting and for what reasons, and what issues were on the agenda.

Jim Mather: The primary purpose of the Qatar Investment Authority (QIA)’s visit to Scotland was to review the potential for private sector investment in Scotland. The visit provided the First Minister and the Minister for Enterprise, Energy and Tourism with an opportunity to meet representatives of the QIA to hear about its strategy and objectives and to discuss possible trade and investment links.

  Scottish Development International’s Director of Europe, Middle East and Africa and the Director of Infrastructure at Scottish Enterprise were also present.

  There was no agenda for the meeting.

External Relations

Robert Brown (Glasgow) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how many meetings have been held between Scottish ministers and officials and representatives of the Qatar Investment Authority since 2007; who was present at each meeting, and what issues were on the agenda.

Jim Mather: The only meeting between Scottish ministers and officials and representatives of the Qatar Investment Authority was on 7 May 2008.

External Relations

Robert Brown (Glasgow) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether any future meetings are planned between Scottish ministers and officials and representatives of the Qatar Investment Authority.

Jim Mather: No meetings are currently planned between Scottish ministers and officials and representatives of the Qatar Investment Authority.

Fertility Services

Jackie Baillie (Dumbarton) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-26853 by Nicola Sturgeon on 9 September 2009, whether the proposed expert group on infertility services will consider whether patients should be able to choose where to have IVF treatment based on waiting times.

Shona Robison: It is for individual NHS boards to decide where patients in their area receive IVF treatment. The Expert Group on Infertility Services, when formed, will consider how best to ensure equity of access to IVF across NHS boards in Scotland.

Fertility Services

Jackie Baillie (Dumbarton) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether IVF treatment will be subject to a waiting time guarantee.

Shona Robison: It is not currently possible to have a waiting time guarantee for IVF as NHS boards do not report this information to Information Services Division as the patient data belongs to the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA).

  Scottish Government officials are in preliminary discussions with colleagues in Information Services Division to consider whether it is possible to develop definitions and data to enable the reporting of patient access to infertility services without breaching the HFEA guidelines.

Fertility Services

Jackie Baillie (Dumbarton) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-26853 by Nicola Sturgeon on 9 September 2009, when the proposed expert group on infertility services is expected to (a) begin and (b) complete its work.

Shona Robison: The Expert Group on Infertility Services is expected to start its work in autumn 2009. Six monthly reports from the group, once set up, will be shared with Parliament.

Finance

Pauline McNeill (Glasgow Kelvin) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what the purpose is of the presumed North Sea capital allocation fund, as referred to in The Herald of 17 September 2009.

John Swinney: I can confirm that the Scottish Government has no plans to introduce a North Sea capital allocation fund.

Finance

Pauline McNeill (Glasgow Kelvin) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how much is set aside for the presumed North Sea capital allocation fund, as referred to in The Herald of 17 September 2009.

John Swinney: No money has been set aside for the North Sea capital allocation fund as there is no fund nor are there any plans to introduce such a fund.

Forth Crossing

Jeremy Purvis (Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to its progress report of 30 June 2009 to the Public Audit Committee on major capital projects with a value in excess of £50 million, whether the construction of the proposed Forth Replacement Crossing will affect the delivery of any of the other projects and, if so, which projects and how.

John Swinney: We are working to manage the impact of the Forth Replacement Crossing on the Scottish Government capital programme. We are in discussions with HM Treasury to seek flexibility for the funding profile for the project and maintain continuity in the funding of other infrastructure priorities in Scotland. We remain committed to taking forward the Forth Replacement Crossing through public procurement and finance.

Health

Irene Oldfather (Cunninghame South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what guidance it issues to NHS boards with regard to ensuring that checks-ups following surgery are undertaken to ensure that post-operative infection is speedily identified.

Nicola Sturgeon: Specific guidance for NHS boards is contained in the Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network (SIGN) publication Postoperative Management in Adults - A Practical Guide to Postoperative Care for Clinical Staff . This guidance is available from the SIGN website at: http://www.sign.ac.uk/pdf/sign77.pdf .

  In addition, as part of the Scottish Patient Safety Programme, the Surgical Site Infection Prevention Bundle has been developed and implemented by NHS boards to improve the consistency and standard of treatment given to patients and to improve patient outcomes.

  The Surgical Profiles Project also provides data to improve surgical care. This is a package of comparative clinical indicators on local surgical services that NHS boards can use to help improve the delivery and outcomes of patient care by identifying potential areas for attention and also areas of good practice. This project is being managed by NHS Health Quality. The link to this work is:

  http://www.nhshealthquality.org/nhsqis/3638.html.

  Good progress is being made in reducing the number of Surgical Site Infections (SSIs). The sixth national annual report on SSIs confirmed a downward trend in infection rates across all categories of surgery. Overall the figures show a significant decrease from 1.1% of all reported procedures in 2007 to 0.7% in 2008.

Health

Irene Oldfather (Cunninghame South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what guidance it issues to NHS boards with regard to ensuring that patients’ fluid intake charts are completed in full.

Nicola Sturgeon: Adequate fluid intake is fundamental to the care of all patients and as such is the responsibility of everyone involved in the care of patients. Accurate recording of fluid balance for those at risk of, or suffering from dehydration, is key to providing a safe level of care. Maintaining accurate records, including fluid balance charts, is a core responsibility of all registered staff who are accountable for their practice. It is also the responsibility of those who are employed within the NHS in the care team, such as health care assistants.

  The Scottish Government has not issued specific guidance to NHS boards on this matter. However, NHS Quality Improvement Scotland’s Clinical Standards on Food, Fluid and Nutrition in Hospitals, (standard 3.6), provides NHS Scotland with a specific standard on fluid intake monitoring. All NHS boards are currently being peer reviewed regarding these standards.

Housing

Irene Oldfather (Cunninghame South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-5628 by Stewart Maxwell on 31 October 2007, what further work it has undertaken with regard to improving the rights of park home residents.

Alex Neil: Following consideration of Scottish Government research which was commissioned to provide an accurate picture of residential park and mobile homes in Scotland, I have agreed to a programme of work on mobile homes policy which will respond to the concerns of those in the sector. We are putting resources in place to deliver this and shall make an announcement on the detail shortly.

Housing

Rhoda Grant (Highlands and Islands) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what level of funding it anticipates for affordable housing projects in (a) 2009, (b) 2010 and (c) 2011 in each Scottish parliamentary constituency in the Highlands and Islands Region.

Alex Neil: The following table provides details of the Affordable Housing Investment Programme for 2009-10 for the five local authority areas that encompass the Highland and Islands parliamentary constituencies. Information is not held by calendar year or by Scottish parliamentary constituency.

  

 
2009-10 £ Million


 Highland 
 32.125


 Orkney
 7.904


 Shetland
 3.800


 Western Isles
 6.675


 Argyle and Bute
 24.675


 Total
 75.179



  Funding for Local Authorities in 2010-11 and 2011-12 has not yet been agreed.

Housing

Rhoda Grant (Highlands and Islands) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what measures it is taking to improve access to affordable housing for first-time buyers in the Highlands and Islands.

Alex Neil: The Scottish Government supports first-time buyers through its Low Cost Initiative for First Time Buyers (LIFT). This currently offers three options for first time buyers in the Highlands and Islands:

  1. New Supply Shared Equity or shared ownership. Properties are built buy a Registered Social Landlord and offered for sale to first time buyer

  2. Open Market Shared Equity. Eligible first time buyers can purchase properties being sold on the open market with a grant from Scottish Government.

  3. Rural Home Ownership Grants. Eligible individuals can apply for a grant to build their own home.

Housing

Rhoda Grant (Highlands and Islands) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the Open Market Shared Equity Pilot scheme will continue to operate in (a) Eilean Siar, (b) Highland, (c) Orkney Islands, (d) Shetland Islands and (e) Argyll and Bute Council areas in (i) 2010 and (ii) beyond 2011.

Alex Neil: No decisions have yet been taken on the availability of the Open Market Shared Equity Pilot scheme beyond March 2010. Decisions on the scheme’s future in all areas of Scotland will be taken soon.

Justice

Gavin Brown (Lothians) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how many direct measures were issued for (a) assault and (b) assault to injury in July 2009, broken down by sheriff court.

Frank Mulholland: The following table shows the number of charges of (a) assault and (b) assault to injury where the initial decision taken by the Procurator Fiscal was to deal with the offending behaviour by means of a direct measure.

  The 310 charges relate to a total of 282 persons issued with an offer of a direct measure, out of a total of 3,583 persons offered a direct measure during the same period.

  The figures include only those direct measures that were affected by the provisions in the Criminal Proceedings etc (Reform) (Scotland) Act 2007.

  Charges: Assault and Assault to Injury

  

 Office
 Direct Measure Issued
 Charges: Reported


 Assault
Assault to Injury
Assault: Charges Reported
Assault to Injury: 
Charges Reported


 Aberdeen
 7
 2
 192
 77


 Airdrie
 1
 1
 112
 35


 Alloa
 1
 0
 24
 18


 Arbroath
 9
 8
 35
 26


 Ayr
 1
 2
 40
 50


 Banff
 2
 1
 12
 10


 Campbeltown
 0
 0
 8
 2


 Cupar
 3
 1
 31
 9


 Dingwall
 3
 0
 34
 0


 Dornoch
 0
 0
 9
 0


 Dumbarton
 1
 0
 74
 33


 Dumfries
 4
 3
 22
 33


 Dundee
 11
 1
 91
 26


 Dunfermline
 9
 3
 49
 22


 Dunoon
 2
 0
 25
 2


 Duns
 0
 0
 7
 2


 Edinburgh
 10
 1
 187
 191


 Elgin
 4
 3
 26
 23


 Falkirk
 17
 0
 132
 13


 Forfar
 3
 0
 20
 0


 Fort William
 0
 1
 10
 4


 Glasgow
 46
 13
 491
 124


 Greenock
 1
 0
 19
 12


 Haddington
 0
 0
 26
 40


 Hamilton
 14
 1
 161
 41


 Inverness
 17
 1
 78
 5


 Jedburgh
 1
 0
 5
 8


 Kilmarnock
 3
 0
 100
 82


 Kirkcaldy
 18
 7
 104
 36


 Kirkcudbright
 0
 1
 2
 6


 Kirkwall
 1
 0
 12
 0


 Lanark
 2
 0
 20
 2


 Lerwick
 0
 0
 10
 0


 Livingston
 13
 4
 73
 63


 Lochmaddy
 2
 0
 4
 0


 Oban
 0
 2
 11
 5


 Paisley
 12
 2
 102
 37


 Peebles
 0
 0
 1
 1


 Perth
 7
 1
 68
 11


 Peterhead
 11
 1
 27
 11


 Rothesay
 0
 0
 3
 0


 Selkirk
 0
 0
 13
 13


 Stirling
 6
 0
 58
 18


 Stonehaven
 1
 0
 11
 3


 Stornoway
 0
 0
 10
 0


 Stranraer
 1
 1
 9
 14


 Tain
 0
 0
 36
 1


 Wick
 3
 2
 20
 4


 Grand Total
 247
 63
 2,614
 1,113



  Notes:

  1. The information in this table has been extracted from the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service’s case management database. The database is a live, operational database used to manage the processing of reports submitted to procurators fiscal by the police and other reporting agencies. If a Procurator Fiscal amends a charge submitted by a reporting agency, the database will record details only of the amended charge.

  2. The database is charge-based. The figures quoted therefore relate to the number of charges rather than the number of individuals charged or the number of incidents that gave rise to such charges.

  3. Procurator Fiscal jurisdictions match sheriff court jurisdictions.

Justice

Gavin Brown (Lothians) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how many direct measures were issued for (a) assault and (b) assault to injury in August 2009, broken down by sheriff court.

Frank Mulholland: The following table shows the number of charges of (a) assault and (b) assault to injury where the initial decision taken by the Procurator Fiscal was to deal with the offending behaviour by means of a direct measure.

  The 222 charges relate to a total of 211 persons issued with an offer of a direct measure, out of a total of 4,118 persons offered a direct measure during the same period.

  The figures include only those direct measures that were affected by the provisions in the Criminal Proceedings etc (Reform) (Scotland) Act 2007.

  Charges: Assault and Assault to Injury

  

 Office
 Direct Measure Issued
 Charges: Reported


 Assault
Assault to Injury
Assault: Charges Reported
Assault to injury:
Charges Reported


 Aberdeen
 10
 2
 178
 58


 Airdrie
 9
 0
 112
 10


 Alloa
 0
 0
 37
 13


 Arbroath
 10
 7
 29
 18


 Ayr
 0
 1
 79
 58


 Banff
 0
 0
 10
 17


 Campbeltown
 1
 1
 15
 10


 Cupar
 5
 0
 29
 10


 Dingwall
 1
 0
 31
 0


 Dornoch
 0
 0
 5
 0


 Dumbarton
 4
 0
 61
 22


 Dumfries
 3
 2
 20
 27


 Dundee
 7
 1
 100
 27


 Dunfermline
 5
 1
 50
 46


 Dunoon
 3
 0
 12
 1


 Duns
 1
 0
 2
 6


 Edinburgh
 4
 4
 202
 192


 Elgin
 2
 3
 29
 19


 Falkirk
 12
 3
 108
 19


 Forfar
 3
 0
 21
 0


 Fort William
 4
 0
 20
 3


 Glasgow
 17
 12
 525
 124


 Greenock
 1
 1
 19
 23


 Haddington
 0
 1
 15
 21


 Hamilton
 8
 0
 151
 20


 Inverness
 12
 0
 107
 9


 Jedburgh
 0
 0
 6
 10


 Kilmarnock
 7
 0
 96
 69


 Kirkcaldy
 10
 3
 71
 51


 Kirkcudbright
 0
 0
 9
 7


 Kirkwall
 0
 0
 13
 0


 Lanark
 0
 0
 12
 3


 Lerwick
 0
 0
 9
 0


 Livingston
 11
 1
 61
 48


 Lochmaddy
 0
 0
 2
 0


 Oban
 0
 2
 12
 1


 Paisley
 5
 0
 88
 38


 Peebles
 0
 0
 1
 1


 Perth
 6
 0
 56
 8


 Peterhead
 2
 0
 19
 13


 Rothesay
 0
 0
 6
 2


 Selkirk
 1
 0
 6
 2


 Stirling
 1
 0
 61
 9


 Stonehaven
 1
 0
 15
 3


 Stornoway
 3
 0
 13
 0


 Stranraer
 3
 0
 22
 12


 Tain
 1
 0
 23
 0


 Wick
 4
 0
 21
 9


 Grand Total
 177
 45
 2,589
 1,039



  Notes:

  1. The information in this table has been extracted from the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service’s case management database. The database is a live, operational database used to manage the processing of reports submitted to procurators fiscal by the police and other reporting agencies. If a Procurator Fiscal amends a charge submitted by a reporting agency, the database will record details only of the amended charge.

  2. The database is charge-based. The figures quoted therefore relate to the number of charges rather than the number of individuals charged or the number of incidents that gave rise to such charges.

  3. Procurator Fiscal jurisdictions match sheriff court jurisdictions.

Justice

Bill Aitken (Glasgow) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how long each prisoner released from custody on compassionate grounds under section 3 of the Prisoners and Criminal Proceedings (Scotland) Act 1993 was on licence before their death since the coming into force of the act.

Kenny MacAskill: I am able to provide the information requested from 2000 to date and this is set out in the following table. The information relating to cases between 1993 and 1999 will take longer to process but I will send this to you as soon as possible.

  Length of Time Prisoner Released from Custody on Compassionate Grounds before their Death

  

 Prisoner
 


 1
 49 days


 2
 199 days


 3
 89 days


 4
 4 days


 5
 2 days


 6
 4 days


 7
 272 days


 8
 35 days


 9
 182 days


 10
 Died on day granted


 11
 15 days


 12
 1 year 114 days


 13
 174 days


 14
 99 days


 15
 5 days


 16
 7 days


 17 
 11 days


 18 
 7 days


 19
 52 days


 20
 50 days


 21
 Died on day granted


 22
 2 days


 23
 42 days

Legislation

Pauline McNeill (Glasgow Kelvin) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many lawyers are employed by it to draft legislation.

Kenny MacAskill: The Scottish Government employs 122 lawyers in the Scottish Government Legal Directorate (SGLD). Lawyers within SGLD are not employed solely to draft subordinate legislation, but drafting Scottish Statutory Instruments makes up a significant part of the work of the Directorate. Of the 10 divisions in SGLD, eight are engaged in drafting Scottish Statutory Instruments as part of the legal services they provide to the Scottish Government.

  The Office of Scottish Parliamentary Counsel drafts Scottish Parliamentary Bills and Scottish provisions in UK Bills. OSPC presently consists of 14 lawyers.

Legislation

Pauline McNeill (Glasgow Kelvin) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many lawyers were employed by it in (a) 2005, (b) 2006, (c) 2007 and (d) 2008 to draft legislation.

Kenny MacAskill: The table below sets out the number of lawyers employed by the Scottish Government Legal Directorate (known as the Office of the Solicitor to the Scottish Executive before 2007) and the Office of Scottish Parliamentary Counsel in 2005, 2006, 2007 and 2008.

  

 Year
 2005
 2006
 2007
 2008


 SGLD
 111
 110
 111
 120


 OSPC
 16
 14
 14
 14



  Lawyers within SGLD are not employed solely to draft subordinate legislation, but drafting Scottish Statutory Instruments makes up a significant part of the work of the Directorate. Of the 10 divisions in SGLD, eight are engaged in drafting Scottish Statutory Instruments as part of the legal services they provide to the Scottish Government.

  The Office of Scottish Parliamentary Counsel drafts Scottish Parliamentary Bills and Scottish provisions in UK Bills.

Local Government Concordat

George Foulkes (Lothians) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what progress has been made on each of the specified set of commitments listed in the concordat between it and COSLA, signed on 14 November 2007.

John Swinney: Information from the Scottish Government and local authorities on progress on each concordat commitment is already in the public domain. Further information will be provided as it becomes available.

Ministerial Correspondence

Brian Adam (Aberdeen North) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what its performance was in answering ministerial correspondence in the first quarter of 2009.

Bruce Crawford: In the quarter January - March 2009, 7194 letters were received by ministers and 94 % received a reply within our target of 20 working days.

Myalgic Encephalomyelitis

Jamie Stone (Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what specialist training is given to frontline health care staff on recognising the symptoms of myalgic encephalomyelitis.

Nicola Sturgeon: GPs are trained to manage all primary contact with patients and to deal with all problems. Their continuing professional development is supported by NHS boards, NHS Education for Scotland (NES), Deaneries and Royal Colleges.

  The Scottish Public Health Network’s draft needs assessment of services for people living with ME-CFS contains a recommendation that NES should work with ME-CFS organisations to develop training information for healthcare staff across Scotland.

Myalgic Encephalomyelitis

Jamie Stone (Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how many specialist treatment centres there are for myalgic encephalomyelitis, broken down by NHS board.

Nicola Sturgeon: Specialist services include a CFS/ME Nurse Specialist in NHS Fife. NHS Lothian maintains a specific, specialist diagnostic assessment and review clinic for people with ME-CFS. Access to this clinic is governed by a specific ME-CFS protocol that has been agreed with GPs. It is routinely available to them and facilitates GP referral to specialist services.

  A Wellness Enhancement Learning Programme for people with ME-CFS has also been developed by the Centre for Integrative Care in Glasgow. We are funding an evaluation report on that programme to help promote its dissemination.

  In order to encourage further progress in the development of services, we commissioned the Scottish Public Health Network (SPHN) to undertake a needs assessment for ME-CFS. The SPHN draft report provides further details of services at NHS board level (Appendix 5). It can be found at:

  http://www.healthscotland.com/resources/networks/scotphn/projects/CFSME.aspx.

Myalgic Encephalomyelitis

Jamie Stone (Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how long the waiting list is for specialist myalgic encephalomyelitis treatment is in each NHS board.

Nicola Sturgeon: The information is not centrally available in the form requested. The diagnosis and treatment of ME is mainly undertaken in an outpatient setting. While outpatient waiting times information is centrally available for a first outpatient consultation, it is not possible to identify specific conditions such as ME, since the data are collected only at specialty level.

Myalgic Encephalomyelitis

Jamie Stone (Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how many myalgic encephalomyelitis specialists are employed by the NHS, broken down by NHS board.

Nicola Sturgeon: The information requested is not held centrally. The Scottish Public Health Network draft needs assessment for ME-CFS contains a recommendation that the specialist element of the service model it proposes (Tier 3) should consist of a multi-disciplinary team led by a Consultant in ME-CFS.

Myalgic Encephalomyelitis

Jamie Stone (Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what advice, in terms of options regarding employment, education or benefit entitlement, is offered to people with myalgic encephalomyelitis after initial diagnosis.

Nicola Sturgeon: People with ME-CFS are referred by GP practices to appropriate agencies such as the Department of Work and Pensions for information on benefit entitlement, to Job Centre Plus for advice and support on employment, to local authorities for education advice and to other relevant agencies such as Citizens’ Advice Bureaux and voluntary sector organisations such as Action for ME.

Myalgic Encephalomyelitis

Jamie Stone (Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what information is available to people affected by a diagnosis of myalgic encephalomyelitis, such as employers and families of the person diagnosed.

Nicola Sturgeon: I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-27240 on 23 September 2009. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at:

  http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/Apps2/Business/PQA/Default.aspx.

  Information regarding ME is also provided by NHS 24 and voluntary organisations such as Action for ME.

Myalgic Encephalomyelitis

Jamie Stone (Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what financial support and medical training is offered to people caring for people with myalgic encephalomyelitis.

Nicola Sturgeon: I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-27240 on 23 September 2009. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at:

  http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/Apps2/Business/PQA/Default.aspx.

  Financial advice can be provided through agencies such as Citizens’ Advice Bureaux. The Edinburgh ME Self Help Group has been successful in its application to the Long Term Conditions Self Management Fund, set up with government funding of £2 million this financial year and the same amount in 2010-11.

Myalgic Encephalomyelitis

Jamie Stone (Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what respite care is available to people caring for people with myalgic encephalomyelitis, broken down by NHS board.

Nicola Sturgeon: The information is not centrally available.

  The Scottish Government included a commitment in the concordat with local government to make progress towards an additional 10,000 respite weeks a year, both at home and in care settings.

  With COSLA, we have also launched revised short breaks guidance promoting the development of personalised, planned short breaks which meet the needs of all carers and those they are caring for.

NHS Equipment

Nanette Milne (North East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how many positron emission tomography (PET) scanners are available, broken down by NHS board.

Nicola Sturgeon: I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-22480 on 24 April, 2009. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/Apps2/Business/PQA/Default.aspx .

NHS Equipment

Nanette Milne (North East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it considers there to be sufficient capacity for the number of positron emission tomography (PET) scanners required for (a) treatment and (b) research.

Nicola Sturgeon: PET/CT services are planned on at a pan Scotland rather than regional or local board level. The National PET Advisory Group which comprises clinicians and managers from NHS boards which either have, or are due to have PET/CT scanners meets regularly and this group provides the forum to advise Scottish Government on both current and future clinical (treatment) needs.

  As the service has developed it was agreed that NHS Scotland should seek partnerships with Universities to broaden the research base and develop the evidence to support the increasing use of PET/CT in the future. The research community is also represented on the National PET Advisory Group.

NHS Equipment

Nanette Milne (North East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether there are plans in place for additional positron emission tomography (PET) scanners and, if so, where they will be sited.

Nicola Sturgeon: Currently PET/CT scanners are available in Aberdeen, Glasgow and an independent sector supported scanner in Edinburgh (pending the installation of the approved centrally funded scanner during 2009-10). A fourth scanner is due to be installed in NHS Tayside during 2009-10.

Parliamentary Questions

George Foulkes (Lothians) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive why question S3W-25138, lodged on 23 June 2009, has not yet been given a substantive answer.

John Swinney: I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-25138 on 18 September 2009. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/Apps2/Business/PQA/Default.aspx .

People with Learning Disabilities

Johann Lamont (Glasgow Pollok) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what it proposes to do to improve employment opportunities for adults with learning disabilities, 18% of whom are, according to recent research by the Scottish Consortium for Learning Disability, in employment.

Fiona Hyslop: The Scottish Government is funding and working in partnership the Scottish Consortium for Learning Disability and others to increase employment opportunities for people with learning disabilities. It is also currently working with COSLA to develop a supported employment approach that provides flexible support to enable disabled people including those with learning disabilities to secure and stay in paid employment in the open labour market. A Task Group has been set up to oversee the development of the framework and will report its findings later in the autumn.

Renewable Energy

Gavin Brown (Lothians) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether marine energy projects in Scotland that have received grants from the UK or Scottish Government will be eligible for all five renewables obligation certificates (ROC) for wave energy or for three ROCs for tidal energy, as provided for by the Renewables Obligation (Scotland) Order 2009.

Jim Mather: The Renewables Obligation (Scotland) Amendment Order 2009 states that the enhanced ROC bands for wave and tidal power (five and three ROCs respectively) are not available for stations which have received grant funding from the Scottish or UK Governments.

Renewable Energy

Gavin Brown (Lothians) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans are in place to enable marine energy projects to receive enhanced renewables obligation certificates in addition to grant funding, to help secure commercial capital investment in the first demonstration projects.

Jim Mather: The enhanced Renewables Obligation Certificates levels were designed and introduced to support commercial projects - that is, projects which did not need additional grant funding.

  These aspects of the legislation can only be changed on the basis of evidence concerning wave and tidal energy project costs. We will be gathering up to date information on these costs over the coming months. This will determine whether or not there are any aspects of the legislation as it stands which need to be amended.

Scottish Futures Trust

George Foulkes (Lothians) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-25137 by John Swinney on 10 September 2009, what the salary is for each post for which an appointment has been made.

John Swinney: The Chief Executive of the Scottish Futures Trust, Barry White, has already made clear that the salary scales will be made public pending appointments in accordance with SFT’s publication scheme.

Scottish Futures Trust

Jeremy Purvis (Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to its progress report of 30 June 2009 to the Public Audit Committee on major capital projects with a value in excess of £50 million, which of these projects will be constructed under the Scottish Futures Trust.

John Swinney: I refer the member to the Scottish Futures Trust’s Business Plan for 2009-10 which was published on 5 June 2009 and which sets out its business objectives, activities and priorities for the current year. Copies of the Plan can be obtained from the Scottish Parliament’s Reference Centre (Bib. number 48319).

Scottish Government

George Foulkes (Lothians) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what it considers to be the statutory basis of the authority of a minority government should it be defeated in a vote in the Parliament.

Bruce Crawford: The authority of any government derives from its ability to command the confidence of the Parliament. Statutory provisions (and, in particular, sections 45(2), 47(3)(c), 48(2) and 49(4)(c) of the Scotland Act 1998) have relevance only where the Parliament formally resolves that the government no longer enjoys that confidence.

Scottish Government Finance

Jeremy Purvis (Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to its progress report of 30 June 2009 to the Public Audit Committee on major capital projects with a value in excess of £50 million, whether these projects are treated equally in terms of importance of delivery and timescale.

John Swinney: The Scottish Government is committed to effective management and delivery of its capital programme. Every Scottish Government funded or part funded capital project with a budget of £5 million in value or more is subject to a Gateway Review. Revenue financed capital projects are subject to Key Stage Reviews. The purpose of these tools is to provide assurance at key points in a project’s lifecycle that it will achieve its outcome in terms of cost, timescales and quality.

Scottish Government Finance

Jeremy Purvis (Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the progress report of 30 June 2009 to the Public Audit Committee on major capital projects with a value in excess of £50 million, by how much the total value of the projects differs from the lowest estimate to the highest estimate, expressed in pounds sterling.

John Swinney: The Scottish Government is taking forward a comprehensive programme of infrastructure investment worth around £35 billion over a decade. Based on the cohort of projects over the threshold of £50 million the total value of projects reported to the Public Audit Committee, the lower end cost estimate is £9.1 billion and the upper end cost estimate is £10.2 billion. The range of these estimates is £1.1 billion.

Scottish Government Staff

George Foulkes (Lothians) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what the line management responsibility is of the Permanent Secretary for the Scottish Executive; how this is exercised on a daily or weekly basis, and what changes there have been to this since May 2007.

John Swinney: The direct line management responsibilities of the Permanent Secretary of the Scottish Government are primarily for the six officials in Director General posts within the Scottish Government and, within the framework of the independence of the Lord Advocate in relation to her functions, the Director General post of Crown Agent and Chief Executive of the Procurator Fiscal Service, but also extend to the Director of Strategy and Ministerial Support and to his Private Secretary within the Scottish Government, and to the Director of Government Skills within the UK Civil Service. Through these direct responsibilities, he has ultimate line management responsibility for all employees of the Scottish Government, except special advisers and with limitations on that responsibility in respect of staff employed in executive agencies or non-ministerial departments, and for the staff of Government Skills.

  Since May 2007, as part of a significant restructuring of senior management there has been a reduction of one in the number of Director General posts within the Scottish Government and the Permanent Secretary has ceased to have direct line management responsibility for the Director of Human Resources and Corporate Services, the Director of Communications and the Director of Culture, External Affairs and Tourism.

  His responsibilities for Government Skills have also been taken on since 2007. The Permanent Secretary’s direct line management responsibilities are discharged principally through regular meetings with individuals and the Scottish Government’s formal performance management arrangements, or their equivalent in relation to Government Skills, and his overall line management responsibilities through a variety of other means.

Scottish Government Transport

George Foulkes (Lothians) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what journeys have been taken by official car by each eligible civil servant since September 2008.

John Swinney: The detailed information requested is currently being collated and I will write to the member as soon as the information is available and a copy will be placed in the Scottish Parliament Reference Centre (Bib. number 49199).

Student Finance

Irene Oldfather (Cunninghame South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether there are any differences in the guidance it has issued in 2009-10 compared with that issued in 2008-09 regarding the manner in which discretionary funds can be used by universities to assist students in hardship as a result of changes to student income and, if so, whether it will list these differences.

Fiona Hyslop: The main changes for the 2009-10 guidance for Discretionary Funds relate to the Part-time Discretionary Fund. Support for this has been extended to eligible learners studying part-time advanced level courses (HNC, HND, a Degree course, PDA or CPD at SCQF level 7-11). The inclusion of SCQF level 11 is initially for academic year 2009-10 and is subject to review. This change is set out in the 2009-10 guidance which was issued to all institutions and can be found on-line on the Student Awards Agency for Scotland website at the following link:

  http://www.saas.gov.uk/_forms/disc_funds_0910_revised.pdf.